California two-way star with Husker offer

Steve Ryan

06/04/2006

At 6 foot, 2 inches, 225 pounds, Ryan McCants is an athletic force. He's physical to be sure, but his size belies his quickness on either side of the ball. Nebraska usually looks for those types, projecting them to more than one position. Such is the case with Ryan. The question is, though: Will what the Huskers want him to play be the position he ultimately wants to play in college?

Averaging over six yards per carry last year for
Santiago high (Corona, CA), and it's not hard to see what one of Ryan McCant'sstrengths
are.

As every other player seems to be getting bigger, but still
retaining their speed, coaches from around the country seem to be looking more
and more for that big type of player, whose athleticism doesn't suffer because
of it.

That's McCants, as his stats speak for themselves on offense and
his 50 tackles and two sacks from the defensive end position says plenty as
well.

But before you go labeling this young man as a brutish sort,
relying more on physicality than athleticism, Ryan offers his own opinion as to
his ability, which he thinks covers a lot more than just putting your head down
and going. "I think I am pretty quick for someone my size, and I am really good
at finding the hole on offense and just hitting it with everything I
have.

Ryan will admit, though, that if he gets in trouble or doesn't see
that hole, he'll revert to his bread n' butter. "If I know I can't get around
the guy, I'm going to run him over," he said. "I want the defender to know he's
not going to like tackling me very much."

Ok, now transfer that to the
defensive side and you get much of the same response as to just what this young
man can do. "One thing I am really good at is reading my keys and making sure I
am in a position to make a tackle," Ryan said. "Plus, I am quick off the ball
and I am pretty strong for my size."

McCants has that much right to be
sure as right now; he's benching 315 and squatting well over 400. And while his
4.6/40 doesn't seem like it's too terribly good, it certainly hasn't slowed him
and you don't need a 4.40/40 to be active or even disruptive.

McCants
said that he loves being disruptive, because it just means everyone else on the
team gets their own shot to shine. "They spend a lot of attention on me, so I'm
doing to do my best to make sure other players get involved," Ryan said. "I'm
good at getting off that edge, and if it's a passing situation, I know I can get
into the backfield all day."

There's no dilemma about Ryan's ability, but
some would want to know just what position he'll play in college. He's good on
both sides, has been offered for both sides (Ole Miss as a running back –
Nebraska as a linebacker or defensive end) and that kind of diversity in the
attention he's getting seems to confirm just how versatile he is.

Versatility or not, though, in a perfect world McCants said that running
back would be the spot for him. But if that doesn't happen, he's not closing the
door on anyone. "I'm more comfortable playing running back, because that's where
I think I can make more big plays than I could on defense," he said. "I'm not
going to say the position is the key to the recruiting deal, though. Whatever
place it is, whatever position they want me for, I'm far more interested in the
program, the academics and the team itself. I can work on all that position
stuff later."

As mentioned above, Nebraska is recruiting McCants for
defense, either at linebacker or defensive end. And if there is one thing Ryan
knows about the Huskers, it's the fact that right now, they are known as a
defensive team. "I don't know much about them, but I know that's a defensive
team," he said. "It'd be exciting to be part of something like that, because
they really have a defense that intimidates.

Ryan can relate to that. He
intimidates just about anyone on the field, wondering if he'll come busting up
the middle to them or possibly to someone else. At his size, he's just not the
kind of kid you want to take from the front or up high.

McCants likes
the position he puts defenses in when he does get the ball. He felt that it was
up to him to dictate the game. "If I get off to a good start early, that just
kind of sets up the pace for the rest of the game," he said. "You start getting
into a rhythm and you can't wait until you get the ball again."

When it
comes to recruiting, McCant's size and speed are intriguing to anyone. You can
see him playing both sides of the ball, even if you don't actually need that
aspect of his game. While there are only two offers right now for McCants, he
said that plenty of other schools are showing interest, so he feels that it's
just a matter of time.

That might leave Husker fans a little put off, but
Ryan said that waiting on more offers isn't a way of scoping out that bigger and
better deal. It's just hoping that you have an ample amount of opportunities,
which you will choose from as the place for the next four or five years.

Being a California resident, many people might assume, that when USC,
UCLA or even Cal jumps in with offers, it's only a matter of time before he
commits. But not being from California, Ryan said that he isn't as influenced by
the traditional powerhouse stature of those schools, and distance isn't really
an issue. "I was born in Ohio, so I don't look at the bigger programs around
here like everyone else does," he said I don't look at anyone as a place I would
definitely go if they offered me."

What Ryan does care about, though, are
the schools who have offered, making them his early favorites and almost certain
candidates for an official visit when the time comes. "Ole Miss and Nebraska are
definitely two schools I want to visit," Ryan said. "I know both are really good
programs."

The key for these two schools is obviously the offers. That
means each of those schools is showing plenty of interest in him, so he doesn't
mind reciprocating. It means that both of those programs are the most likely, at
least right now, to get official visits when the time comes around.

As
to having favorites amongst this list or any other, Ryan's mind-set is pretty
clear. "I want to go where I am needed and both Nebraska and Ole Miss are places
I could contribute right away," Ryan said. "I'm looking at them, because they
were my first offers, but they also need to work on filling spots at certain
positions."

With Nebraska, there's a connection, because head coach Bill Callahan once coached Ryan's favorite NFL team, the Oakland Raiders. And again,
the reputation the Huskers have for defense is awfully attractive too. It makes
you think about the future, even beyond the NFL. Well, not everyone apparently,
because Ryan said that the NFL is a nice thought, but not what he's thinking
about right now.

"I don't really think about the NFL stuff, because
that's a long ways away," he said. "I am more interested in the academics, plus
the staff and how they can make me a better player. If the coaches are good
people, that's good enough for me."

With two offers right now, there is
no pressure on McCants to think about what he's going to do as far as officially
choosing a team. When the offers increase, as they probably will, Ryan said
that's when he might start to narrow it down.

The one thing he doesn't
know right now, though, is just who will be recruiting him for what position.
Not that it matters, because Ryan said that in the end, the position might be
irrelevant, because he's not choosing a position, he's choosing a school. That's
what has his interest the most. "If it's a place where I feel comfortable with
the coaches and the academic institution, that's really what I am looking for,"
he said. "If it happens to be a couple of thousand miles away, that's ok,
because I'll go wherever I feel the most at home."

"It doesn't matter to
me if I don't start right away and I am not that worried about depth charts. I
just want to go to the right place for me."

McCants hasn't made up his
mind as to just where all of his official visits might go, but currently,
Nebraska and Ole Miss seem to be certainties to get one of the five allowed.